The Washington Parish School Board met on April 16 at Franklinton Elementary School.
Prior to the invocation, Board member Scott Breland asked everyone to remember Board member Amanda Dillon who recently underwent knee replacement. This was followed by the approval of minutes for the March 12 Regular Board Meeting and for the March 23 Special Board Meeting.
Tricia Smith, Director of Communications & Operations, recognized the Student Advisory Council for the 2025-2026 school year. Superintendent Jennifer Thomas could not say enough about the value of the relationships she formed with these seniors and the insight they provided. This first-ever Council furnished feedback on a myriad of topics. They all received a medal to wear at graduation and sincere thanks from the Superintendent.
Next, Jennifer Benninato, Supervisor of Curriculum for Middle and High Schools, recognized the Student of the Year from each junior high and high school in the parish as well as the parish Students of the Year.
Director of Finance Dana Knight then asked for any questions concerning the February financial statements presented earlier in the Finance Committee meeting. She also provided a list of donations to schools between February 10, 2026, and March 18, 2026. The Board then voted to authorize advertisement for Public Hearing for an amended budget for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, as well as advertisement for Public Hearing on next year's budgets.
The Board also adopted the Special Federal Fund Budget revision for the 2025/2026 fiscal year. Knight explained that the funding was increased threfore spending did as well. The $15,830 budget provided for Early Childhood Literacy and the amount of money was increased in January, 2026, thereby requiring a budget revision.
In other financial business the board approved the allocation to schools for next year's operations budgets. The total amount is $323,650 with ten percent ($35,365) being placed in a contingency fund.
In the Finance Committee meeting, Knight explained that the system decreased by 194 students between February 2025 and February 2026 with Superintendent Thomas adding that over 100 of those moved out of state, an unusual occurrence. Knight explained that Louisiana's numbers are down with 66 of the 69 school districts showing a decrease in students, making this a problem not limited to Washington Parish but plaguing the entire state.
The Board then voted to authorize the disbursement of Educational Facilities Improvement District funds in the amount of $2,000 for certificated qualified employees and $1,400 for uncertificated qualified employees on Friday, May 8, 2026. As of April 16, the account has collected $1,493.001.75. Disbursements are anticipated to be just under $1.6 million and Knight expects the gap to be filled in the remaining time until disbursements and the system will be "good to go" in issuing the money to employees.
The final financial matter saw the Board approving changing the capitalization threshold from $5,000.00 to $10,000.00.
In the Superintendent's Report, Jennifer Thomas congratulated the Student Advisory Council on a job well done as well as the Students of the Year and their parents.
She reminded everyone that LEAP testing is ongoing throughout the remainder of April and in some cases into May. Thomas will be giving her annual "State of the Schools" report at the May 14 meeting at the School Board Office.
She also gave the dates of graduation ceremonies and wished parish baseball, softball, track, fishing, golf, and tennis teams the best of luck in their respective play-offs.
Finally, Franklinton Primary School will hold its first annual Krewe of Cubs Alphabet Parade on April 28 at 1:00 pm which is also the date of the Bus Driver Appreciation Luncheon.
